“Everyone has something dark in their past. I suppose it’s our job to overcome it. And if we can’t overcome it, then all we can do is make the most of it.”
—Tricia Levenseller, Daughter of the Pirate King
Book Title: Daughter of the Pirate King
Author: Tricia Levenseller
Length: 336 pages
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Ya, Action and Adventure
My Rating: 3/5
My Age Rating: 14+ ~ 15+
Content Notes: Just kissing, mild language and pirate slang, crude jokes and innuendo, torture, forced captivity, abuse and manipulation, substance use, violence and gore, murder, emotional themes, trauma, sexism, sexual harassment, sexual assault and threats.
“I live on the cusp of two worlds, trying desperately to fit into one.”
― Tricia Levenseller, Daughter of the Pirate King
Book Synopsis:
There will be plenty of time for me to beat him soundly once I’ve gotten what I came for.
Sent on a mission to retrieve an ancient hidden map―the key to a legendary treasure trove―seventeen-year-old pirate captain Alosa deliberately allows herself to be captured by her enemies, giving her the perfect opportunity to search their ship.
More than a match for the ruthless pirate crew, Alosa has only one thing standing between her and the her captor, the unexpectedly clever and unfairly attractive first mate Riden. But not to worry, for Alosa has a few tricks up her sleeve, and no lone pirate can stop the Daughter of the Pirate King.
My Review:
I have mixed feelings about this book. And I have a lot of thoughts. So here I am, once again, giving all my unasked for opinions, because if I’m being honest, my entire family just zones out when I try to talk about my latest read. So buckle up, because this is about to get messy.
This book was a quick read and I was surprised at how fast I burned through it. But yet, the writing style didn’t feel particularly special to me, though it was fast paced and easy to read, it almost felt a bit too straightforward. And I wish that it had given me a bit more time to be immersed in the scene. As for the plot, it was full of action and there weren’t really any slow points, which I enjoyed, but I also felt that there wasn’t anything about it that really stood out to me and it felt in a way quite simple. Not to mention that her big secret (which you find out early so really it’s not that big of a secret) I felt in a way almost took away from the story and the romance. She was spending so much time focusing on it and the hate she feels towards it that it made me slightly annoyed every time she brought it up.
One thing I did like was that the characters were very well written. I felt that the right things were revealed early on so that you knew enough about the main character to understand her and her motives, but you were still left to learn her other secrets. But, I found many of the characters were entirely unlikable, making it a bit hard to enjoy some scenes, though they are pirates, so I don’t really think you’re meant to like them, who knows? I did like some of the more likeable side characters though, and I’m happy that she spent time on them, and let us get to know them better throughout the story.
This book had been advertised to me as having great enemies to lovers’ vibes and banter. Two of my favorite things, so I had high hopes for this book going into it. But sadly I felt this book was slightly wasted of its potential, specifically when it came to the romance factor. The enemies to lovers part felt slightly rushed to me, I felt that she could have really made us wait for that first kiss, building the tension and the questioning of the want they feel for each other, but instead she almost skipped that, and therefore I found the kisses just seemed lustful and not very meaningful, especially since they always seemed to have an ulterior motive behind it. I love a good kissing scene in a book, when the tension and denial has climaxed into an undeniable and life changing kiss. But none of the kisses in this book really gave me that feeling, and while the banter had me giggling at times, I didn’t feel it was as good as it could have been. It honestly made me feel slightly sad and letdown. In a way, the romance felt almost bipolar. Intense and steamy at some times and then all denial and acting like nothing was there at others. There needed to be a bit of a balance, and I just found it wasn’t there.
Not to mention that I felt like the connection between the two love interests wasn’t very strong. Both of the characters were far from innocent, and I felt like that almost made what they felt for each other less special and set apart. It felt very lustful and conditional in a way, and that made me feel like there was this wasted potential that could have been an amazing love story. I’m interested to see how their relationship changes and progresses in the next book of the series. Because while there were moments that shone bright, I still felt it could have been better and it didn’t leave me fully satisfied. Now let’s get into the content, since I know that’s what a lot of you are here for.
This book was spice free, with only kisses, though they were steamy ones at that, and probably would have gone farther if they hadn’t been cut short. As for language there was nothing other than some mild profanities and crude pirate slang. And while there was no spice in this book, there was a lot of content that wasn’t necessarily clean, lots of innuendo and crude jokes were strung throughout, especially since the characters in the book were pirates, they were portrayed for the most part as horrible people. Themes of torture, violence and gore, substance use, abuse and manipulation are common throughout. Not to mention that the main character is threatened, sexually harassed and sexually assaulted (though it always ends before anything explicit happens).
Overall I would say this book would be for ages 14+, maybe even 15+ considering the fact that some of the content could be triggering or too intense for some readers. I think you have to remember going into this book that the main character and those surrounding her are pirates, and therefore their outlook on life and the way they live it is far from okay.
Overall, if you are really craving a good pirate book with a strong female main character, and care about heavy action and a quick plot then this is the book for you. But if tender, well written romance is what you are looking for, then this book will leave you wanting. I don’t regret reading this book, it was still lots of fun and I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the series and continuing to follow these characters through their next adventure. I hope this helps next time you’re trying to find a new favourite!
Happy Reading,
Ava
If you are looking for a swashbuckling adventure than click this Link
Leave a Reply